We are a local chapter of the Friesian Horse Association of North America (FHANA), representing:
Alberta
NE British Columbia
Saskatchewan
Manitoba
NW Territory
Yukon
We host and organize:
Keurings (inspections) with KFPS Judges from the Netherlands
Driving and Riding clinics with well-known national and international clinicians
Club events, such as trail rides and social events
The Musical Ride Group that trains and performs in Alberta
Participation in parades and events, such as Calgary Stampede
The Alberta Quadrille; excisting of 8 drivers and 8 identical carriages, each pulled by 2 Friesians.
FHANA Chapter
FHANA is our parent society, and FHANA in turn reports to KFPS, which is the mother studbook in the Netherlands. We all register our Friesian Horses through the FHANA/KFPS. There are other fringe studbooks for Friesian horses, but KFPS is the original Friesian horse studbook from Friesland, a province in The Netherlands where the Friesian horse originated from. The KFPS Studbook is also by far the largest, as well as really the only recognized Friesian horse studbook world-wide and in North America.
KFPS Studbook Registration
The value of a Friesian Horse on the local and international market depends on the KFPS Studbook Linear Score it has achieved, and not the standing in other studbooks. AFHA therefore encourage Friesian horse owners to obtain proper accreditation for their Friesian horse(s) at one of our Keurings.
To get to know us better, please check out our brochure or flyer, or connect with us personally.
FHANA Chapter of the Year: 2014–2022
The Alberta Friesian Horse Association has been awarded the FHANA Chapter of the Year awards for NINE consecutive years. This award recognises North American chapters that have gone above and beyond in organising events and shows for their members. The chapter of the year follows the following FHANA criteria.
Milestone Event: AFHA 25th Anniversary Show
October 19, 2022
Building on previous success from 2019, the Alberta Friesian Horse Association members put together a grand evening show program once more: 3 hours packed with 16 acts, including a history carousel, Dressage, Quadrille, Musical Ride, and much more. See the AFHA 25 event page for more photos, videos, and social media highlights.
Milestone Event: FHANA 35th Anniversary Show
July 15–17, 2019
Our local Alberta chapter, AFHA, hosted about 500 guest from all over Canada, the United States, and The Netherlands to celebrate the thirty fifth anniversary of the Friesian Horse Association of North America. The celebration included a trip to Gerard Paagman's House of Friesians in the Rocky Mountains and trips to local Alberta Friesian Horse Owners, such as Muilwijk Friesians. The highlight was the show day at the Calnash Ag Event Centre in Ponoka, Alberta: a packed spectacle with 41 acts, including the Musical Ride, Friesian Quadrille, and much more. See the photo blog for photos of each act as well as the fantastic compilation video below.
Milestone Project: the Alberta Quadrille
AFHA members' latest project, an outgrowth of the AFHA Musical Ride, 8 Friesian Sjees carriage synchronously in motion. The Alberta Quadrille is based on the original Quadrille in Friesland, which is performed with authentic antique carriages and cultural dress. Its Alberta counterpart uses so-called "training carriages." It debuted to a wider audience at the FHANA 35 celebration in Ponoka and is now a croud favourite at many-a horse event.
FHANA
Friesian Horse Association of North-America fhana.com
The Friesian Horse Association of North America is a subsidiary association of the KFPS, representing the Friesian Horse Breed and the KFPS Studbook for North America.
FHANA organizes all North-American Keurings, the inspections tours for Friesian horses with registered KFPS judges from The Netherlands. The local FHANA chapters host the Keurings, but the paperwork goes through FHANA, who registeres horses in the KFPS Studbook on behalf of breeders.
FHANA has numerous chapters throughout North America, as shown below. For more details on the chapters (and a more up-to-date list), see: FHANA Chapters
KFPS Royal Friesian
International Friesian Horse Studbook, based in The Netherlands | kfps.nl
AFHA members register their Friesian horses with this studbook.
KFPS stands for: Koninklijk Friesch Paarden-Stambook (translated: Royal Friesian Horse Studbook), established in 1879, it has since received recognition with the "royal" title by the monarchy in The Netherlands.
KFPS is headquartered in the Netherlands, working globally with local and regional organisations to "protect the interests of the breed". KFPS manages the studbook administration wordwide.
KFPS is The Netherlands' oldest and second largest studbook. The other well-known Dutch studbook (KWPN) is for another type of horse, the Royal Dutch Warmblood.
KFPS has about 11,000 members with about 70,000 Friesian horses registered world-wide. It publishes at monthly glossy magazine called "Phryso" (Dutch).
In The Netherlands, the KFPS functions as accreditation agency and also sets breeding directives to control the future of the breed. Most members in The Netherlands are also connected to local breeding clubs, which host things such as breeding and show events as well as information sessions. In North America, most Friesian Horse owners are connected to local FHANA chapters instead.